What’s the founding story behind changelly — how was the idea born?
Changelly was created to specifically provide easier access to bitcoin and other crypto currencies. When I discovered bitcoin in 2012 it immediately became apparent that this was going to change the world. Coming from a background in payments I knew what the ecosystem needed most and now fast forward 5 years later and here we are.
How do you personally pay your bills? Crypto or Fiat?
For the past 7 years I have been paying my bills with crypto and couldn’t imagine a more efficient way. No need for bank wires or heavy fees as now I can pay directly without any middleman taking a fee.
Changelly already offers millions of people the option to easily invest into crypto. What would you consider your biggest target audience and how will you go about expanding business to, f.exp. People who don’t have a visa or mastercard?
Changelly has always catered to a variety of different users. The biggest target audience for us right now is Asia. After our most recent visit to BlockShow in Singapore, it’s clear that there are no signs of crypto slowing down. It is imperative now to provide the correct on-ramps, which are region specific. In the coming months, Changelly will be adding more localised options for users in various markets to have even easier and cheaper access to crypto. Especially, and as you said, not everyone has Visa or MasterCard, hence the reason for alternative ways in which to buy and exchange these assets. I am excited for these other payment methods as I believe this will grow the ecosystem on a global basis.
Why the rocket in your logo? Is changelly going to the moon?
The rocket symbolises power, ability, and the desire to escape. It represents reaching one’s goals despite overwhelming challenges. In order to push crypto to the mainstream, and reach mass adoption, it will have to do exactly what a rocket does, and reach the moon.🚀
These days, blockchain and crypto topics are often in the news in relation to Libra, the people’s bank of china or any other stablecoin. What do you think about the future of digital money. Will we have, as the English central bank governor proposed a synthetic hegemonic currency replacing the US$ as the trading currency of the world? Where would that leave cryptocurrencies?
It really is an exciting time, especially considering that money has been a 2,000 year old problem and we are solving these problems with cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology. The future is definitely in favour of digitised currencies and I don’t think we have even begun to scratch the surface. The topic of money is so delicate, and in order for people to start adopting digital money we need to do a lot more. Education will be a very big component if we are to see digital money replace the standard US dollar. Crypto is here to stay and we must begin accepting the facts.
What do you think about privacy-coins? With the push of governments to enforce KYC and AML on all cryptos, how do you think privacy coins will be dealt with? Do you personally use them?
Privacy is something we seek but very difficult to achieve in today’s world. When I first started to be introduced to privacy coins I began to understand just how innovative and groundbreaking they were. With any type of innovation of this nature it will always cause governments and regulatory bodies to intervene. There is a place for privacy coins but it is still very u certain as to how they will be positioned with other crypto currencies.
Talking of KYC, will users have to complete KYC to buy cryptocurrencies through changelly? If not, do you think this will change at some point?
All of our users go through KYC and AML monitoring in relation to the types of transactions they perform through the Changelly platform.
Finally, shameless propaganda for changelly and what is your goal for the last not even 50 days of this year?
Changelly was started 4 years ago to provide the most efficient way to buy and exchange between crypto currencies. We have built an incredible ecosystem of customers and partners and provide them the necessary rails in order to on-board and participate in this growing economy. Our goal is to continue providing innovative solutions, which will soon include the ability to sell crypto as well as launching banking and fiat services.
Changelly is a non-custodial instant cryptocurrency exchange platform, which means that no user funds are placed in the service. Operating since 2015, Changelly acts as an intermediary between crypto exchanges and users, offering access to 150+ cryptocurrencies. The company’s mission is to make the exchange process effortless for everyone who wants to invest in cryptocurrency. Attracting over a million visitors monthly Changelly provides its loyal community with high limits, fast transactions, and 24/7 live support.
For those who’d love to make crypto exchanges on-the-go, the platform offers its official mobile app, which now features fixed-rate exchanges. For those who would like to exchange crypto at a floating rate, Changelly offers the lowest fee of 0.25% for all crypto-to-crypto exchanges.
Changelly offers its API and a customizable payment widget to any crypto service that wishes to broaden its audience and implement new exchange options. Dozens of crypto businesses already use Changelly API, which adds the instant swap feature to their services. The platform also offers an Affiliate program with a 50% revenue share mechanism.
Learn more about Changelly